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Sunday, July 2, 2017

2 July- Blogs I'm Following 2 of 2

#FraudNewsCNN #FNN pic.twitter.com/WYUnHjjUjg — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 2, 2017 Well that's certainly mature. But on a serious note this cannot be interpreted any other way than that the president of the United States is fomenting violence against a news outlet that has been critical of him. CNN's Brian Stelter had this response. CNN statement responding to the president: "We will keep doing our jobs. He should start doing his." pic.twitter.com/Gn1YRA2DRG — Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) July 2, 2017 It is going to be a little hard to celebrate the birth of this n...more »

*FOX News*: *EXCLUSIVE: Pentagon sails destroyer near disputed island in South China Sea, officials say* For the second time since President Trump took office, the Pentagon dispatched a U.S. Navy warship to sail near a disputed island claimed by China in the South China Sea, two U.S. defense officials told Fox News. The USS Stethem, a guided-missile destroyer based in Japan, sailed within 12 nautical miles of Triton Island, which is part of the Paracel Islands located in the South China Sea between China and Vietnam. The destroyer was trailed by a Chinese warship during its Sunday...more »

The United States government initially claimed Abu Zubaydah was the No. 3 man in al Qaida. But especially since the release of the Senate intelligence committee’s report on CIA torture, such an assertion has become increasingly harder for government officials to make. John Kiriakou, a former CIA officer who was The post Interview With John Kiriakou And Joseph Hickman On New Definitive Book On Abu Zubaydah appeared first on Shadowproof.

*Simon Tisdall, The Guardian*: *China tears up promises to UK and shows the world who is in charge* *Xi Jinping offered no concessions on civil liberties during his visit to Hong Kong* Xi Jinping’s tough talk in Hong Kong reflects growing self-confidence in China’s ability to shape world events and browbeat or ignore less powerful countries such as Britain. The Chinese president could have thrown a bone to the pro-democracy movement. He could have offered a sop on civil liberties and political rights to western opinion. Instead, he told Hong Kong who’s boss. Xi the hard man laid...more »

When Donald Trump's lawyers cut a deal to pay $25 million to keep the President of the United States from ending up in court on racketeering charges related to the systematic defrauding of thousands of Trump "University" students, the judgment promised that any plaintiffs who refused settlement could take their cases to court. When the final court documents came down, however, the agreement ignored the stipulation to sue. Long story short, one plaintiff, Sherri Simpson, has hired a top-notch legal team to take her case to court, as the original agreement guaranteed. Clips from int...more »

So this happened today: President Trump on Sunday tweeted a modified video of a wrestling match between himself and his media rival CNN. ... The video appears to show Trump attacking and subduing a figure whose face is obscured by a CNN logo. The video Trump tweeted is from WrestleMania 23 in 2007 when Trump competed versus WWE head Vince McMahon during a staged "battle of the billionaires" fight where each chose one wrestler to represent them.... Trump tweeted the video with the hashtags #FraudNewsCNN and #FNN.... Here's the tweet: #FraudNewsCNN #FNN pic.twitter.com/WYUnHjjUjg ...more »

*Andrew Sullivan* Andrew Sullivan is a conservative, a Catholic, and a former editor of The New Republic. Sullivan has also worked as a columnist for The Sunday Times of London. Sullivan states that he has "always been a Zionist". Andrew Sullivan . *Andrew Sullivan* After 9 11, Sullivan was "one of the most militant" supporters of Bush's War on Terror. Sullivan supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Andrew Sullivan . Sullivan has opposed affirmative action (special help for the less fortunate). Andrew Sullivan . Sullivan is a typical conservative. ... *Above, we see Aaron...more »

CFACT Senior Policy Analyst Paul Driessen explains the huge costs in land and materials of replacing fossil fuels with wind, solar, and biomass fuels -- which would still require fossil fueled backup power supplies to provide continuous power during downtimes. Moreover,neither wind turbines, solar panels, nor even solar thermal installations can generate sufficient heat to melt silica, iron, or other metals and cannot supply the required power on a reliable basis to operate smelters and factories. He therefore calls forquantitative studies of the negative impacts of solar and wind po...more »

July 1 I was interviewed on BBC Radio 5 on the future of the Islamic State and rebuilding Mosul. I was quoted by Paul Iddon in “Islamic State’s last stand in Iraq: Who will liberate Hawija?” in Rudaw, and mentioned in "Medeniyet mirasi barbarliga kurban" by Detay Haber in Turkey's Karar. I was also cited in *The Second Cold War *by Luiz Alberto Moniz Bandiera, *The Iraqi Federation: Origin, Operation and Significance* by Farah Shakir, "Honesty and Transparency Are Not Enough" by Andrew Gelman In Chance, "Realizing an Opportunity: Limiting the Power of the Executive in the Iraqi Co...more »

Students cleaning up Mosul University campus building in east Mosul (Los Angeles Times) The ninth month of the Mosul campaign saw another day of advances. First, the Rapid Reaction Division freed Shifanorth of the Old City district along the Tigris River for the fifth time. The Iraqi forces (ISF) entered the neighborhood at the end of May and immediately got caught up in the medical complex. Iraqi propaganda obscured exactly what happened but either the hospitals were constantly changing hands or the Iraqis never cleared them completely until now. The Ibn Sina Hospital for example...more »

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (5: 15) – Following the stupendous recapture of large swathes of territories formerly controlled by the Islamic State in southern Aleppo, the Syrian government forces continue to cleanse the remaining pockets as to secure the whole area. Having liberated up to 14 villages in the area located between East Khanssir toward the north […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

I know it was you Fredo. You broke my heart.Courtesy of McClatchy: *Republicans are growing concerned that the staffs of Donald Trump and Mike Pence are starting to feud, the latest trouble to hit a White House that has spent months battling crisis after crisis. * *They worry that any rift could be delaying decisions, distracting aides from their already stalled legislative agenda and could lead to more infighting and leaks, problems that have plagued the White House since Inauguration Day. * *A half-dozen Republicans, including four who advised or worked for Trump’s campaign or ...more »

*Reuters:* *Gulf deadline to resolve Qatar rift approaches* Qatar faces possible further sanctions by Arab states that have severed ties with Doha over allegations of links to terrorism, as a deadline to accept their demands is expected to expire on Sunday night. Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said the demands were made to be rejected, adding that the Arab ultimatum was aimed not at tackling terrorism but at curtailing his country's sovereignty. But he told reporters in Rome that Doha remained ready to sit down and discuss the grievances raised by...more »

By Paul Homewood TheTelegraph have published the following letter today from Phillip Williamson, in response to Booker’s column last week: SIR – Christopher Booker is right to question whether busy airports provide suitable locations for weather stations, particularly for temperature extremes (“Nice heatwave, but June 1878 was hotter”, June 25). However, his historical analysis fails […]

Who would credit it? Donald Trump and his son in law Jared Kushner have managed to rack up another potential criminal offence to their mounting charge sheet, this time in relation to an alleged blackmail hosts of two TV hosts, who have been the target of Trump’s vitriol. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/donald-trump-is-not-well/2017/06/30/97759ee0-5d0f-11e7-9b7d-14576dc0f39d_story.html?utm_term=.933f4101102c No doubt, social media has many […]

Congo declared its two-month Ebola outbreak officially over on Saturday after 42 days without recording a new case of the disease. Congolese health authorities approved the use of a new experimental vaccine but ultimately declined to deploy it. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-ebola-congo-idUSKBN19M384

China supports resolving disputes through negotiations and its 2.3-million strong army, and does so for defensive purposes only, says Beijing. Photograph: Joe Chan /Reuters *Zachary Keck, National Interest:* *The Chinese Military's Secret Weapon against America* As Alexander de Tocqueville observed nearly two centuries ago, Americans are by nature an optimistic people. This optimism has often been a source of national strength, propelling us to seek ever greater heights. In certain instances, however, optimism can be dangerous. One such instance is in dealing with China’s rise. Ma...more »

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (4: 05 P.M.) – The military commander of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham – the Syrian offshoot of al-Qaeda – was killed yesterday during clashes with the Syrian Army in the southwestern province of Quneitra. Duraid al-Shuneibli was reported dead when the Syrian Army, backed by local fighters, made a successful counteroffensive, thus reversing all […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (3: 00 P.M.) – A surge of suicide attacks hit the Syrian capital early morning as government forces carry on a wide-scale offensive in the northeastern suburbs of Jobar and Ayn Tarma. Two vehicles exploded near the Airport Roundabout located in the far eastern flanks of Damascus while the third one made it […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

I love our police department and also the Kootenai County Sheriffs. They are exceptional. This area is home to quite a few yellow bellied marmots. They used to dart in and out of the rocks surrounding the parking lot of the original Costco in Spokane where I worked. People here love them because they're so friendly. Just imagine a large (20 lb) friendly squirrel begging for food and you've met a marmot. This happened at my Walmart in Post Falls. A standoff, tense negotiations and a forced extraction of a stubborn suspect. It's just another night on the graveyard shift for offi...more »

So there's the anti-Dean Heller ad that the shady dark money SuperPAC, America First Policies, run by Pence operatives and financed through Pence's efforts, finally started running. Because Republicans in the Senate flipped out when they heard how aggressively Trump planned to go after the vulnerable Nevada senator, it seems to be have been toned down a bit. But "a bit" isn't enough for many Capitol Hill Republicans who are increasingly viewing Trump-- for a variety of reasons-- as an existential threat to their agenda and, more importantly, to their careers. Trump has been hemor...more »

As Donald Trump shows his strange obsession with Mika Brzezinski, William Rivers Pitt asks the $64,000 question: Why is the Republican Party still here? After all, the Republicans nominated and then elected a farcical caricature of a buffoon, a vulgarian oaf, a serial liar of Brobdingnagian proportions, a confessed misogynist and serial assaulter of women, a fact-free ignoramus too ego-blinded to recognize how much he doesn't know, to the highest office in the land. To the surprise of virtually no one, he has bollixed up the job so comprehensively that his approval rating currentl...more »

*British Student union president sparks controversy by saying she would like to 'oppress white people', everyone should read the Koran and that men and women must not be friendsAll that is pretty orthodox Islam. The only wonder is that non-Muslim English students voted for the garbageA Muslim student union leader has claimed she would like to 'oppress white people' and has suggested there would be an Islamic takeover if more people read the Koran.Zamzam Ibrahim, who was ele...more »

*Media lies about "extreme weather"* If you happened to read or hear the German and international headlines from just over a week ago, you’d think the million-population port city of Hamburg, Germany, had been hit by a devastating tornado on June 22, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. What follows is a great example of how the media will run with anything, without checking, as long as it fits their climate and extreme weather narrative. The German media over the years have been tending to hype up every weather anomaly — to get the message into people’s heads that climate ...more »

*Robert W. Merry* *History, * Who was the worst of the worst? If you wanted to identify, with confidence, the very worst president in American history, how would you go about it? One approach would be to consult the various academic polls on presidential rankings that have been conducted from time to time since Harvard’s Arthur M. Schlesinger Sr. pioneered this particular survey scholarship in 1948. Bad idea. Most of those surveys identify Warren G. Harding of Ohio as the worst ever. This is ridiculous. Harding presided over very robust economic times. Not only that, but he inh...more »

*James Jay Carafano* *Security, * Washington wasn't always a superpower. *George Washington's effort to hold off the British Invasion of New York could not have gone worse. Luckily, the Continental Army avoided complete annihilation by slipping across the Long Island Sound, under cover of darkness. The battle itself was a humiliating defeat for Washington. But, the loss also revealed an insight that was key to the ultimate American success: The Continental Army could afford to lose battles; but if it remained an Army-in-being, the British couldn't declare victory. Washington ri...more »

*Darien Cavanaugh* *Security, * Detachment Hotel was Kennedy’s tropical vacation hideout. *“This place wouldn’t have survived a direct hit,” Anthony Miller of the Palm Beach Maritime Museum told VisitFlorida.com, Florida’s official Website for promoting tourism.* In December 1960, the SeaBees – the U.S. Navy’s construction force — supposedly began the mundane task of building a munitions depot behind the Coast Guard station on Peanut Island, Florida. Known as “Operation Hotel,” the SeaBees actually built a secret nuclear fallout shelter for president-elect John F. Kennedy, who o...more »

*Kyle Mizokami* *Security, Asia* And millions would have died. In 1969 the two pillars of the communist bloc, the Soviet Union and the People’s Republic of China, nearly went to full-scale war. Years of deteriorating ties between the two countries, once the staunchest of allies, finally led to skirmishing on the long mutual border between the two countries. While tensions were eventually de-escalated, what if the two countries had gone to war? On March 2, 1969 Soviet troops patrolling Damansky Island (Zhenbao) on the Ussuri River came under fire from Chinese troops. The attack, ...more »

*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* *Daniel Lazare, Strategic Culture:* *The Mad Chase for Russia-gate Prey* June is turning out to be the cruelest month for the Russia-gate industry. The pain began on June 8 when ex-FBI Director James Comey testified that a sensational New York Times article declaring that “members of Donald J. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and other Trump associates had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials” was “in the main … not true.” Then came Republican Karen Handel’s June 20 victory in a special election in Georgia’s sixth congression...more »

U.S. President Donald Trump arrives at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland as he returns back from Bedminster, New Jersey to participate in the Celebrate Freedom Rally in Washington, July 1, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas *Reuters:* *Trump to speak by phone with leaders of Japan, China on Sunday* U.S. President Donald Trump will speak by phone on Sunday with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the White House said on Saturday. The White House, which announced the calls in a daily schedule, did not elaborate on the subject of the phone conversations, which were ...more »

From Jenna Orkin 13 Year Old Channels Nikola Tesla, Creates Free Energy - Gas 2 'I was recruited to collude with the Russians': An unexpected player has added a new layer to the Trump campaign's Russia ties Pope Francis just dismissed two of the most powerful officials in a major shake-up at the Vatican Warren Buffett is now the largest owner of 2 of the world's biggest banks Chris Christie Announces New Jersey Government Shutdown, Orders State Of Emergency US Government Prepares For 'Space Weather Event' As NASA Warns "Solar Minimum Is Coming" America's Fertility Rate Falls To ...more »

Nestled deep within the foothills of the Himalayas, Jhamtse Gatsai is one of the most extraordinary and inspiring communities you're likely to witness. It's led by Buddhist Monk Lobsang, a renowned spiritual teacher who works to create a reality of love and acceptance for children who have been abused or orphaned. Tashi and the Monk follows that mission as it relates to one of the newest arrivals to his commune - a reluctant five-year old girl who's endured unimaginable neglect and tragedy during her brief life. The post Full Documentary | Tashi And The Monk appeared first on OYE ...more »

Had a great time fishing this week! #ownit #soulsearching #ownthedash #america A post shared by Dakota Meyer (@dakotameyer0317) on Jun 30, 2017 at 9:26am PDT At time like this we could all use a laugh. And luckily there is this clown available for just that purpose. I would not even dress a child in that outfit.

*(Click on Image to Enlarge)* *George Friedman and Kamran Bokhari, MauldinEconomics:* *Medieval Times in the Modern Middle East* If geopolitics studies how nations behave, then the nation is singularly important. Nation-states are the defining feature of the modern political era. They give people a collective identity and a pride of place… even when their borders are artificially drawn, as they were in the Middle East. Constantly in conflict with the notion of nationalism, especially in such a volatile region, are transnational issues. These are issues like religion and ethnicity ...more »

Andrew Marr's introduction this morning: So good news all round, folks. It turns out there *is *money to spend on social priorities after all. Glossy and waving golden in the summer wind, the magic money tree has been discovered at last. But, sorry, some bad news just in - it only grows in Northern Ireland. Across the rest of the country, Tory ministers are now going against their own manifesto and openly lobbying for the magic money trees of their own. Labour is behaving as if they won the election but - just as interesting - the Tories are now behaving as if they'd lost it. Wit...more »

By Paul Homewood I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o’er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden wi-ind mills Whenever anybody complains about the English countryside being littered with wind farms and solar panels, the renewable lobby usually come back with […]

Israel's consistent, illegal and dangerous attacks on Syrian sovereignty must be condemned. Anything less means that the UN will have lost even more credibility in the eyes of the wider world. The post 4 reasons Israeli and allied aggression against Syria must be condemned appeared first on The Duran.

Some people have deep faith in the anthropogenic global warming (AGW) or "man-made only" warming and climate change (CC), deep faith like religion. Natural global warming-global cooling cycles, or nature-made warming and CC is taboo for them, no such thing, it violates their religion and will never never accept it even if hard data and graphs are in front of them. Among such climate religionists is Arcy Garcia. Arcy is a friend way back in the late 80s when I was still a socialist. While we have some similar beliefs like respect for human rights and opposition to Du30's no-due-proce...more »

HMS Queen Elizabeth leaves for its maiden sea trials.Aircraft Carrier Alliance *Popular Mechanics*: *Does Britain's Big New Warship Still Run Windows XP?* HMS Queen Elizabeth is impressive. Her software is not. HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Navy's newest vessel and the largest one ever built in the United Kingdom, is an impressive ship. Nine hundred and nineteen feet long with a crew of 1,600, the ship can carry up to 40 aircraft. Queen Elizabeth and her sister ship, Prince of Wales, will form the UK's main expeditionary force at sea, sailing into hotspots with their decks full o...more »

With each passing breakthrough in artificial intelligence, we’re asking our machines to make increasingly complex and weighty decisions. Trouble is, AIs are starting to act beyond our levels of comprehension. In high frequency stock trading, for example, this had led to so-called flash crashes, in which algorithms make lightning-quick decisions for reasons we can’t quite grasp. In an effort to bridge the growing gap between man and machine, the Pentagon is launching a new program to create machines that can explain their actions in a way we puny humans can understand.

By Cathy Jameson Last week, I shared a post about our family’s summer vacation. Despite the short business trip that took my husband away for a few days and that exhausting night that Ronan stayed wide awake until 3am, it...

Courtesy of Time: *An Indiana man has been charged for fatally shooting his 9-year-old daughter in the head while teaching his two sons about gun safety. * *On June 10, Eric Hummel, 33, from Hobart, Indiana, was telling his sons about the dangers of playing with guns when his daughter Olivia walked into the room, People, citing court documents, reports. Unaware that the gun was loaded, he said he pointed it toward her and fired. * *Hummel has since been charged with neglect of a dependent resulting in death, battery resulting in death to a person less than 14 years old, reckless ...more »

During the last ice age, too *little* atmospheric carbon dioxide almost eradicated mankind by Dennis T. Avery Aside from protests by Al Gore, Leonardo Di Caprio and friends, the public didn’t seem to raise its CO2 anguish much above the Russians-election frenzy when Trump exited the Paris Climate Accords. Statistician Bjorn Lomborg had already pointed out that the Paris CO2 emission promises would cost $100 trillion dollars that no one has, and make only a 0.05 degree [Celcius] difference in Earth’s 2100 AD temperature. Others say perhaps a 0.2 degree C difference, and even that wou...more »

*RT:* *Russian military lab unveils prototype of Star Wars-like combat suit (VIDEO)* A major hi-tech Russian military research center has unveiled what appears to be a prototype of a next-generation combat suit. The stunning gear, resembling Star Wars outfits, will be worn by Russian soldiers on future battlefields. The prototype features a helmet covering the soldier’s face and cutting-edge body armor. The next-generation combat gear also includes a powered exoskeleton to help increase performance and stamina while fighting. *Read more* .... *More News On Russia Unveiling It's...more »

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat, I'm all ready, you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!" - Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel

"Only after the last tree has been cut down; Only after the last fish has been caught; Only after the last river has been poisoned; Only then will you realize that money cannot be eaten." - A Cree Indian Prophecy

*"A Buddhist Prayer of Forgiveness"* "If I have harmed anyone in any way, either knowingly or unknowingly through my own confusions, I ask their forgiveness. If anyone has harmed me in any way, either knowingly or unknowingly through their own confusions, I forgive them. And if there is a situation I am not yet ready to forgive I forgive myself for that. For all the ways that I harm myself, negate, doubt, belittle myself, judge or be unkind to myself through my own confusions, I forgive myself." ◆ “I forgive the tears I was made to shed, I forgive the pain and the disappointments, I for...more »

House Rules (the sermonette) 1. The middle of nowhere is the best place on Earth. 2. The Phone Call: "I feel so miserable without you; it's almost like having you here." 3. You're more or less on your own. Better to have and not need than need and not have. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad. If you have no common sense, stay home and don't bother everyone else. 4. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice. 5. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes ...more »

Retired United States Air Force Brig. Gen. Charles E. "Chuck" Yeager settles into the back seat of an F-15D Eagle from the 65th Aggressor Squadron Oct. 14, 2012, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Jason W. Edwards *Task & Purpose*:* The 10 Greatest Tweets From 93-Year-Old Airman Chuck Yeager* World War II fighter ace Brig. Gen. Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier 70 years ago. Now he tweets hilarious shit. Air Force Brig. Gen. Chuck Yeager has had an epic career. During World War II, he flew 64 missions and decimated 13 enemy planes. Though he was sh...more »

"We are all free to do whatever we want to do,” he said that night. “Isn’t that simple and clean and clear? Isn’t that a great way to run a universe?” “Almost. You forgot a pretty important part,” I said. “Oh?” “We are all free to do what we want to do, as long as we don’t hurt somebody else,” I chided. “I know you meant that, but you ought to say what you mean.” There was a sudden shambling sound in the dark, and I looked at him quickly. “Did you hear that?” “Yeah. Sounds like there’s somebody...” He got up, walked into the dark. He laughed suddenly, said a name I couldn’t catch. ...more »

Katty Kay (l); Katty Kay (r) You've got to hand it to Katty Kay, the face of the BBC in the United States as presenter of BBC World News America. She's not having any of that Andrew Marr nonsense about BBC journalists repressing their personal political views. If she's angry and has a political point to make she'll just come right out and say it. On her BBC News website blog yesterday, for example, she launched into a long and stinging denunciation of the US president over 'Faceliftgate' - his tweets about Mika Brzezinski being "sexist" and "unacceptable", his use of personal info...more »

Air Force F-35s fly in formation over Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. Photo: Air Force *Bloomberg:* *F-35 Unreliability Risks Strain on Pentagon Budget, Tester Says* * Planes and parts are taking longer to repair than planned * Air Force, Navy face increases to fund greater support costs Costs to operate and support Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-35 will balloon unless the deteriorating reliability of the Pentagon’s costliest program improves, according to an assessment from the Defense Department’s own testing office. The aircraft and its parts aren’t as reliable as expected, and it’...more »

Also from the *Sunday Times *comes an article on the very theme of this blog from Andrew Marr. It is (as you might expect) a justification of himself *and* the BBC: # I'll try to summarise it: Everyone has political views, but those views (especially party-political ones) are ones BBC journalists have to repress. Staying impartial while reporting on emotive issues isn’t easy but it has to be done. Every Sunday morning he has to remind himself that political partisans of all persuasions pay their licence fees and that they have the right to have questions asked to politicians th...more »

Courtesy of F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office Courtesy of F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office *Business Insider:* *Check out an inverted F-35 firing off a missile to test performance under negative G forces* As the F-35 marches closer to full combat readiness, pilots test the jet in ever more challenging environments, most recently by firing a AIM 9x air-to-air missile while flying upside-down. "This unique missile launch is a situation we don’t expect a pilot to be in very often," read a release. Firing a missile upside-down is nothing new. Fighters have had this capabili...more »

Today's *Sunday Times* includes a long and entertaining interview by Rod Liddle of Jeremy Paxman in which, among many other things, Paxo gives us his take on the BBC and introduces readers like me to a new word, 'parastatal': *Jeremy Paxman*: Would the world be better without the BBC in it? Of course not. Of course there is political correctness at the BBC. I would have to say that the BBC is a parastatal organisation. They believe in the state. And not to recognise that there are those issues there is just silly. *Rod Liddle*: And what are those issues? *Jeremy Paxman*: Parti...more »

US "progress" in eastern Syria is a prelude to protracted conflict, not peace and prosperity. *July 2, 2017 *(Tony Cartalucci - LD) - The Washington Post in a piece penned by David Ignatius, attempts to showcase US progress in eastern Syria where it admittedly and intentionally created the self-proclaimed "Islamic State" (ISIS) and where it now claims it is fighting and defeating it with proxies on the ground as well as an expanding US air and ground presence. Titled, "As the Islamic State falls in Syria, one city offers a preview of the country’s future," the piece attempts to por...more »

*Franz-Stefan Gady, The Diplomat*:* China Tests New Tank in Tibet* A new Chinese light main battle tank has purportedly been tested on the Tibetan Plateau. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has tested a new tank on the Tibetan Plateau in western China, the Chinese Ministry of Defense announced on June 29. “Recently, a new-type of tank has undertaken trials on the Tibet Plateau. The trials were aimed to test the tank’s performance and are not targeted at any country,” PLA spokesman Colonel Wu Qian said during a regular press briefing at the Ministry of Defense (MoD) on June 29. ...more »

Reuters is reporting that nuclear is being targeted by a hacking campaign. The article is exceedingly ambiguous and truncated and simply indicates that the US Dept of Homeland Security and FBI warned businesses across sectors of a hacking campaign aimed at "harvesting credentials": Jim Finkle (2017, June 30). U.S. warns businesses of hacking campaign against nuclear, energy firms. Reuters, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-cyber-energy-idUSKBN19L2Z9 Hackers used tainted "phishing" emails to "harvest credentials" so they could gain access to networks of their targets, the joint ...more »

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (6:32 AM) – The long-awaited offensive by the Syrian Army on the Islamic State-held enclave of eastern Hama has finally materialized following days of Desert Hawk units mobilizing on the Salamiya, Sheikh Hilel, and Ithriya axes. Hours after the launch of the operation, the elite Desert Hawks were able to capture Shahed 9 […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (6:18 AM) – Backed by the local National Defense Forces (NDF), the Syrian Army managed to recapture the quarries area west of Ba’ath City in Quneitra province captured earlier by the jihadist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham during their five-day offensive on the government stronghold. Though supported by several Israeli airstrikes in Syria’s southern province, […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (6:05 A.M.) – The battle for Raqqa has so far resulted in the death of 74 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) by ISIS snipers alone if one is to believe an info-graphic released by Amaq Agency on Saturday. Between June 6 and June 30, the following deaths caused by snipers were […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

Members of the Counter Terrorism Service take a selfie in front of the ruins of Grand al-Nuri Mosque, pictured after it was retaken by the Iraqi forces from Islamic State militants at the Old City in Mosul, Iraq. REUTERS/Erik De Castro *WNU Editor: *The above picture if from this post .... *Iraqi forces close in on IS redoubt in Mosul after declaring end of caliphate* (Reuters)

Originally posted on NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT: By Paul Homewood When people talk about the widely reported global surface temperature record, it is worth recalling Ross McKittrick’s damning assessment of it in 2010, “A Critical Review of Global Surface Temperature Data Products”. ABSTRACT There are three main global temperature histories: the combined…

Originally posted on Watts Up With That?: From the Calgary Herald and the “waiting of the government cash cow” department: Oldest commercial wind farm in Canada headed for scrapyard after 23 years By: DAN HEALING, CALGARY HERALD A line of turbines on metal lattice legs catch the breeze at the Cowley Ridge wind farm in southern…

Originally posted on Watts Up With That?: Guest post by David Middleton From the “you don’t need a weatherman to tell which way the wind blows” files: FOSSIL FUELS New IEA Report Delivers Failing Grades to Most Green Technologies More innovation is needed in the global energy transformation. by Eric Wesoff June 13, 2017 Say…

Originally posted on Tallbloke's Talkshop: Credit: sciencedaily.com Maybe a glimmer of recognition for natural warming from the oceans here, while still believing that alleged man-made effects on air temperatures are somehow warming the water in a cyclical fashion. Could there be a hint of strained logic here? Phys.org reports. Despite persistently increasing greenhouse gas…

Originally posted on Watts Up With That?: Icebreaker CCGS Amundsen. By Tatiana Pichugina – P1030361, CC BY 2.0, Link Guest essay by Eric Worrall h/t James Delingpole / Breitbart – University of Manitoba has a new term for excess sea ice; they now call it “climate change”. Large Canadian Arctic climate change study cancelled due…

Originally posted on Tallbloke's Talkshop: This guest post from Stephen Wilde offers a descriptive theoretical and qualitative perspective on the ‘gravito-thermal’ theory. It covers the vertical profile of the atmosphere as well as the surface temperature comprehensively quantified by Nikolov and Zeller’s latest paper. How conduction and convection cause a greenhouse effect arising from…

Originally posted on Watts Up With That?: From the Ohio State University and the department of obvious science Widespread snowmelt in West Antarctica during unusually warm summer Strong El Nino played a major role in warming the air above the ice, researchers report COLUMBUS, Ohio–An area of West Antarctica more than twice the size of…

Originally posted on NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT: By Paul Homewood h/t Joe Public While Elon Musk has been throwing his toys out of the pram following Trump’s decision to exit Paris, let’s take a look at what his famous batteries have to offer. This is what their website offers: https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/powerwall ? If…

Two dozen Secretaries of State, including many Republicans in red states like Oklahoma, Mississippi, Utah, Texas, Arizona, Indiana, North Dakota, and Tennessee told the Trump Regime to "go jump in the Gulf of Mexico" when they asked for voters' personal information. Trumpanzee woke up Saturday accusing them, of trying to hide something. What they're doing is protecting their citizens from an authoritarian, proto-fascist regime that more and more people-- across the political spectrum-- are coming to realize is a danger to the country. (About time!) Right around the time Donnie De...more »

*Zachary Keck* *Security, Asia* Believe me, it’s not what you think. As Alexander de Tocqueville observed nearly two centuries ago, Americans are by nature an optimistic people. This optimism has often been a source of national strength, propelling us to seek ever greater heights. In certain instances, however, optimism can be dangerous. One such instance is in dealing with China’s rise. Many Americans have failed to grapple with the magnitude of China’s rise, confident that Beijing will go ultimately go the way of the Soviet Union or Japan in the 1980s. Those making this case c...more »

*Warfare History Network* *History, * The size of the U.S. military exploded in World War II, as army numbers alone soared from 174,000 to over 11 million. During World War II about 16,000,000 personnel served in the U.S. Military: approximately 11,200,000 in the Army, 4,200,000 in the Navy, and 660,000 in the Marine Corps. On 1 July 1939, the strength of the active Army was approximately 174,000, three quarters of whom were scattered throughout the continental United States; the rest stationed overseas. The Regular Army was supplemented by the National Guard, which had just 20...more »

*Jared Keller, Task and Purpose* *Security, * Enemy missiles won’t know what hit them. As part of its proposed $171.5 billion fiscal year 2018 budget request, the Navy carved out a hefty $2 billion for a suite of futuristic weapons systems ripped straight from the pages of a science-fiction flick. And a good part of that cash is going toward the service’s much-touted electromagnetic railgun: According to a new report from the Congressional Research Service, the service is on track to equip guided-missile destroyers and cruisers with the fancy launcher within the next 10 years. B...more »

*David V. Gioe* *Politics, * [image: Newspaper truth.] Why can’t America reliably separate out fact, falsehood, opinion and reasoned analysis? It was a clear autumn day in Washington, DC on October 27, 1941, when President Franklin Roosevelt delivered his Navy Day speech to the American people. Halloween was later that week, but Adolf Hitler and his Wehrmacht war machine were scaring the administration. Roosevelt used his address to highlight the threat posed to the Western Hemisphere—America’s hemisphere—per the longstanding Monroe Doctrine. The Japanese surprise attack on Pear...more »

*Daniel Serwer* *Security, Middle East* [image: A Russian soldier stands guard near a Syrian national flag drawn on the wall as rebel fighters and their families evacuate the besieged Waer district in the central Syrian city of Homs, after an agreement reached between rebels and Syria's army, Syria May 21, 2017.] A public red-line warning to Assad has more weight because it brings into the equation the issue of U.S. credibility. Monday night the White House issued a warning to President Assad that if “Mr. Assad conducts another mass murder attack using chemical weapons, he and h...more »

Filipino soldiers lie on a mattress at their combat position in a house as government troops continue their assault against insurgents from the Maute group in Marawi city, Philippines July 1, 2017. REUTERS/Jorge Silva *Reuters*:* Snipers, bombs, mortars - Philippine troops battle against Islamists* Sprawled on the boarded-up balcony of a two-storey house, the barrel of his rifle poked into a hole cut in the wood, the Philippine army sniper calls for quiet before taking his shot. "Firing," he says evenly, before the .50 caliber shot rings out, sending tremors through the house. He ...more »

A message demanding money is seen on a monitor of a payment terminal at a branch of Ukraine's state-owned bank Oschadbank after Ukrainian institutions were hit by a wave of cyber attacks, in Kiev, Ukraine, June 27, 2017. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko *Reuters: **Ukraine points finger at Russian security services in recent cyber attack* Ukraine said on Saturday that Russian security services were involved in a recent cyber attack on the country, with the aim of destroying important data and spreading panic. The SBU, Ukraine's state security service, said the attack, which started in U...more »

Michael Isikoff reports that a number of Democrats in Congress are seriously looking at the use of the 25th Amendment to possibly remove President Trump from office: ... 25 House Democrats, including the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, are ... backing a bill that would create a congressional “oversight” commission that could declare the president incapacitated, leading to his removal from office under the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. At 12:56 p.m. Thursday, barely four hours after Trump tweeted attacks against MSNBC cable host Mika Brzezinski in crude, ...more »

Would you defend a really bad Democratic incumbent against an even worse Republican challenger? How much energy and resources is it worth devoting to? Personally, I wouldn't even *vote* for Orlando area Blue Dog Stephanie Murphy, let alone defend her or contribute to her campaign. Her "F" grade from ProgressivePunch barely even scratches the surface about how she-- and other reactionaries like her in Congress-- are destroying the Democratic Party brand. Her crucial vote score is 26.09. Only 2 Democrats-- both Blue Dogs like her-- have worse scores, Josh Gottheimer (NJ) and Tom O'Ha...more »

DAMASCUS, SYRIA (1:40 A.M.) – On Saturday, two huge Syrian Arab Army (SAA) convoys brushed aside ISIS resistance in eastern Syria and pushed through several kilometers of desert while pincers tried to meet around the Islamic State bastion of Hamimah. During this advance, two hills overlooking Hamimah were captured, thereby securing fire control over the […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

BEIRUT, LEBANON (00:11 A.M.) – The rebel group Failaq Al-Rahman of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) accused the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) of carrying out an attack with chlorine gas in Ayn Tarma, Damascus on Friday. They voiced their claim only four days after the US White House released a statement, warning that a chemical […] Source: AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز

[image: opposition-remains-to-germany-s-legalization-of-same-sex-marriage] Even as Germany's Parliament appears ready to rubber-stamp the legalization of homosexual "marriage," opposition to the move remains strong among the nation's conservatives and Christians.

[image: texas-boys-state-passes-secession-bill-with-cheering-and-celebrating] The young men participating in the annual Texas Boys State celebrated passing an act calling for secession from the American union.

My favorite part: "So I don't know how this happened, or when exactly this stupidifying of the whole year. Maybe it was the advent of Fox News. Maybe it was when we made stars out of the Kardashians. Maybe it was the day John McCain decided to let an ill advised summer fling with a ditzy moron last all the way into November. Whatever it was we have got to get summer back. We've got to be able to enjoy stupidity again. Hard earned, respectable, stupidity. That's what my goal is in the age of Trump." By the way the whole show last night was very solid. From the opening monologue, t...more »

Originally posted on PA Pundits - International: By Fred Lucas ~ Energy Secretary Rick Perry said the upcoming Department of Energy study on power grid’s reliability is needed to address the facts after the Obama administration placed a premium on politics—but green energy is reportedly ready to push back. The study, set to be released…

Originally posted on NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW THAT: By Paul Homewood ? h/t Jo Nova ? Duke engineering professor Michael Bergin (left) stands with Indian Institute of Technology-Gandhinagar colleague Chinmay Ghoroi (right) next to that university’s extremely dusty solar panel array. Global solar energy production is taking a major hit due to…

Originally posted on Watts Up With That?: Guest essay by David Archibald Back in late April, European wine growers were hit by the most damaging frost since 1991. That frost affected vines as far south as Tuscany. More recently it is the western Corn Belt that has been affected by late Spring frost. The following…

A recent study published in Science predicts there will be no comfort for US southerners in the future. As reported in the Atlantic The American South Will Bear the Worst of Climate Change’s Costs Global warming will intensify regional inequality in the United States, according to a revolutionary new economic assessment of the phenomenon. The […]

“The beautiful Trifid Nebula, also known as Messier 20, lies about 5,000 light-years away, a colorful study in cosmic contrasts. It shares this nearly 1 degree wide field with open star cluster Messier 21 (top left). Trisected by dust lanes the Trifid itself is about 40 light-years across and a mere 300,000 years old. That makes it one of the youngest star forming regions in our sky, with newborn and embryonic stars embedded in its natal dust and gas clouds. *Click image for larger size.* Estimates of the distance to open star cluster M21 are similar to M20's, but though they share ...more »

*"Joseph Tainter:* * The Collapse Of Complex Societies"* by Adam Taggart "By popular demand, we welcome Joseph Tainter, USU professor and author of "The Collapse Of Complex Societies." Dr. Tainter sees many of the same unsustainable risks the PeakProsperity.com audience focuses on - an overleveraged economy, declining net energy per capita, and depleting key resources. He argues that the sustainability or collapse of a society follows from the success or failure of its problem-solving institutions. His work shows that societies collapse when their investments in social complexity a...more »

“Our true friends are those who are with us when the good things happen. They cheer us on and are pleased by our triumphs. False friends only appear at difficult times, with their sad, supportive faces, when, in fact, our suffering is serving to console them for *their* miserable lives.” - Paulo Coelho

*"A Blessing for Peace"* "As the fever of the day calms toward twilight May all that is strained in us come to ease. We pray for all who suffered violence today, May an unexpected serenity surprise them. For those who risk their lives each day for peace, May their hearts glimpse providence at the heart of history. That those who make riches from violence and war Might hear in their dreams the cries of the lost. That we might see through our fear of each other A new vision to heal our fatal attraction to aggression. That those who enjoy the privilege of peace Might not forget their tor...more »

Raymond Davis being escorted to a court in Lahore in January 2011. PHOTO: REUTERS / FILE *Daily Mail:* *EXCLUSIVE: CIA contractor who shot two Pakistani robbers then feared death at the hands of mob breaks silence to tell of real-life Homeland plot which became diplomatic crisis* * CIA contractor Raymond Davis was held captive in Lahore, Pakistan after killing Faizan Haider, 22, and Faheem Shamshad, 26, in self-defense January 2011 * The former security contractor had been driving in the city area when two men in a motorbike brandished a gun at him and in fear he fired back * He wa...more »

This is what the US supported puppet regime in Kiev has done to their own citizens who live near the Russian border - in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine. How long do they have to suffer? Russia has not invaded Ukraine - in fact it is the US that has a base in western Ukraine where US Army Special Forces from Ft. Carson, Colorado are presently stationed. They train the Ukrainian National Guard (made up of Nazi death squads) who are then sent to the Donbass to kill the civilians. More war crimes but the world is silent.

I love me some *Double Dragon*. Whether back in the day or more recently, it's always good for a quick whirl. While not the first scrolling beat 'em up, it took the arcades by storm in 1987 and bequeathed home conversions for every format going. *Even the Atari 2600*. Its three dimensional play field, the ability to pull off multiple moves, pick up and use weapons *and* simultaneous two player action saw it become a massive, massive hit even though (whisper it) the game wasn't amazing once the novelty wore off. One for when you had your mates around. In all, *Doub...more »

Courtesy of WaPo: *An even larger group of Senate Republicans suggested Friday that McConnell should scale back or cancel the chamber’s month-long August recess, given the lack of progress they have made on not just health care but a tax-code overhaul, spending bills, the debt ceiling and a budget resolution. * *Senate Republicans David Perdue (Ga.), Steve Daines (Mont.), Joni Ernst (Iowa), John Neely Kennedy (La.), James Lankford (Okla.), Mike Lee (Utah), Mike Rounds (S.D.), Luther Strange (Ala.), Dan Sullivan (Alaska) and Thom Tillis (N.C.) sent McConnell a letter Friday asking ...more »

*Sami Moubayed, Asia Times: **Russia quietly begins building third military base in Syria* *Moscow plans to oversee new 'deconfliction zone' in country's south, charged among other things with clearing ISIS away from Jordanian border.* Over the past few days, the Russian army has quietly started construction of a new military base in the countryside near Damascus, from scratch, tasked with manning and administering a “deconfliction zone” in the Syrian south, similar to four others agreed upon earlier in the year by Moscow, Ankara and Tehran. The first zones applied to Homs, Idlib...more »

"Canada Day (French: Fête du Canada) is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of the July 1, 1867, enactment of the Constitution Act, (then called the British North America Act), which united the three separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick into a single Dominion within the British Empire called Canada. Originally called Dominion Day (French: Le Jour de la Confédération), the holiday was renamed in 1982, the year the Canada Act was passed. Canada Day celebrations take place throughout the country, as well as in v...more »

#USSGeorgeHWBush aircraft carrier has arrived to #Israel & is docked outside #Haifa Port. Ship is currently taking part fight against #IS pic.twitter.com/FtCGEOknC4 — Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) July 1, 2017 *i24 News:* *US aircraft carrier anchors off Israeli coast for first time in 17 years* Ship was previously stationed in the Arabian Gulf, from where airstrikes against IS group were launched The USS H.W. Bush dropped anchor in the waters off the Israeli port city of Haifa on Saturday, marking the first time in nearly two decades that a US aircraft carrier has docked off Isr...more »

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I've been 'around' for a few years now, pursuing the shifting goal of a sharable home-made surfers resource site focused on ease of use and variety of mostly adult ( whoa : I didn't say prurient ) content.